Suntory Distillery celebrates its 100 years

It was 1923 when Suntory started its distillation, thus becoming the pioneer of Japanese whiskey production, with the brands Hakushu, Yamazaki, Hibiki, Toki, etc., by now entered the hearts of all whiskey connoisseurs around the world. Furthermore, in 2023, the company will also celebrate the 50th anniversary of the birth of the Hakushu distillery, located in the forest of the Kaikomagatake mountain.

Expectations were high for the new releases celebrating the first century and the Hakushu anniversary. The wait was not in vain, given that The House of Suntory presented four references, two products under the Yamazaki brand and two Hakushu.
Let’s see them in detail.

•  Yamazaki 12 Years Old Single Malt is made from carefully selected malt whiskies, aged for a minimum of 12 years, and bottled at 43% ABV. The official tasting notes, released by the distillery, describe it as a product characterized on the nose by aromas of citrus fruits, peach, pineapple, cloves, vanilla, and with the inevitable note made by Mizunara wood, which continues on the palate with notes of coconut, cranberry, and butter, in a long and vaguely spicy finish.
  It’s shipping now for a suggested retail price of $185.
• Yamazaki 18-Year Mizunara is made from carefully selected malt whiskies, aged for a minimum of 18 years in Mizunara casks, specially created to contain this “centennial” whisky. It is bottled at 48% ABV. A proper tribute to Mizunara oak, a characteristic feature of Yamazaki. The nose has elegant and rich notes of dark cherry and ripe peach, enriched by cinnamon and nutmeg, which are confirmed on the palate with a spicy base and notes of Japanese incense. The finish is presented as long and persistent, with the confirmation of spicy notes (cloves), sandalwood, and hints of dried coconut.
  It’s shipping now for a suggested retail price of $1500.
• Hakushu 12 Year is the distillery’s peated expression, which starts from peated malt whiskey, then left to rest for at least 12 years in various barrels. The encounter between peat and mountain water of the area, filtered with granite rocks, returns this peated whiskey unique in the panorama of Japanese single malts. It is then bottled at 43% ABV. Official sources describe it as a product characterized by notes of basil, green apple, and pine needles on the nose, fruity on the palate (pear, mint, and kiwi), and with a slightly smoky and green tea finish.
  It’s shipping now for a suggested retail price of $185.
• Hakushu 18-Year Peated Malt is obtained from carefully selected malt whiskies, left to rest for a minimum of 18 years in various types of barrels specially identified to contain the 100th-anniversary whisky. It is then bottled at 43% ABV. Also, for this expression, it is the contrast between the peat and the filtered mountain water that creates that typical delicacy, which is aromatically expressed on the nose with notes of sage, ripe green apple, and hints of ripe pineapple and continues on the palate with herbaceous hints, of grapefruit and acacia honey, with a finish that closes on citric notes.
  It’s shipping now for a suggested retail price of $1200.